North Carolina Film Critics Association

3 hours ago

Essay: The Wild Witness of "Wolfwalkers" from member Joe George.

A stern man strides into a great medieval hall, consternation creasing his face. Weary and worried, he closes his eyes and begins to pray. His prayer begins with a question familiar to every Christian, a question that must be asked by anyone who wants to serve God: "Lord, what must I do?"

But this query—posed in "Wolfwalkers," an animated film now available on Apple TV Plus—is not being asked by just anyone. It comes from the Lord Protector (voiced by Simon McBurney), a fictionalized version of English leader Oliver Cromwell. Designed with thick black lines and sharp angles, the Lord Protector’s features remain severe, even in prayer. “This wild land must be civilized,” he intones before looking upward to finish his prayer, his face given a hellish glow by the fire of a nearby torch, “This is your will.” ...

North Carolina Film Critics Association

6 hours ago

Watch: Darkseid: What You Should Know About The Snyder Cut’s Villain from member Sean O'Connell.

Darkseid is the big bad of the Snyderverse, and fans are eagerly awaiting his debut in Zack Snyder’s Justice League when it hits HBO Max. But unless you’ve read the comics or intensely kept up with Zack Snyder’s Vero posts, you may not know all that much about him as a character. In this video, “Release The Snyder Cut” author and CinemaBlend Managing Editor, Sean O’Connell, gives Hannah a lesson in Snyder School, as he teaches her about Darkseid’s history and larger role in what DC Films had planned for the Snyderverse. ...

North Carolina Film Critics Association

9 hours ago

Essay: That Time When My Family Visited A Location For MONTY PYTHON AND THE HOLY GRAIL (Before It Was A Location For Said Film) from member Daniel Johnson.

In the early ‘70s, my parents, my brother, and I, lived for a year or so in Cambridge, England. During our time there, we visited many landmarks in Britain and Scotland including Doune Castle, a 14th century stronghold that has the distinction of being the principal location in the 1975 comedy classic, MONTY PYTHON AND THE HOLY GRAIL.

The Terry Gillam and Terry Jones-directed movie has long been one of my favorite films, possibly the movie I’ve seen the most throughout my life, but the thing is – when my family dropped by to check the place out, it was a year before the Monty Python group shot their second feature there. Since the film’s release, Doune Castle has been largely rebranded by the hugely successful comedy, with a gift shop full of HOLY GRAIL memorabilia, and for years even hosted an annual Monty Python Day. ...

North Carolina Film Critics Association

12 hours ago

Listen: Inside The Film Room with members Zach Goins and Johnny Sobczak.

After a year without Marvel, the MCU is back with the first two episodes of "WandaVision" on Disney+, and Zach and Johnny are here to break it all down! Plus, a look at Netflix and HBO Max's upcoming slate!

Make sure to follow Inside The Film Room on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, TikTok and YouTube for all the latest movie news (@insidefilmroom), and be sure to subscribe and rate/review five stars wherever you get your podcasts!

Join Johnny’s Denis Villeneuve Discord server: discord.com/invite/GXhMc4Ywxe ...

North Carolina Film Critics Association

1 day ago

Review: "Buoyancy" from member Andrew Spitznas.

Sitting safely in my heated American home, it’s hard to imagine there are 40 million people still in slavery worldwide, 200,000 of them trapped on fishing vessels in Southeast Asia. The Australian feature "Buoyancy" effectively tells the story of one such slave.

For his full-length debut, Australian writer/director Rodd Rathjen didn’t take the easy way. After interviewing 50 slavery survivors and storyboarding his script, Rathjen set off for Cambodia, filming for three weeks at sea and two weeks on land. ...